BERLIN, May 6 (Reuters) – German prosecutors searched some 50 locations across the country on Wednesday, targeting 36 individuals suspected of involvement in two far-right criminal groups accused of forming nationwide networks.
No arrests were made during the operation which involved more than 600 federal and state police officers in 12 states, prosecutors said.
The groups, named as “Jung & Stark” (Young and Strong) and “Deutsche Jugend Voran” (Forwards German Youth), which also operates under the alias “Neue Deutsche Welle” (New German Wave), are suspected of organizing violence through social media and regular meetings, federal prosecutors said in a statement.
The groups are believed to target political opponents, said prosecutors, adding some of those involved are suspected to have attacked left-wing activists or people they believe are paedophiles.
The raids are the latest attempt by German authorities to tackle right-wing activism which security services have long warned is a persistent threat. There is particular concern about young people being drawn into far-right violence.
“The domestic intelligence agency’s findings leave no doubt that we must take the threat posed by right-wing extremism very seriously,” said Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig in a statement.
The uncovering of a suspected violent coup plot in Germany by the Reichsbuerger (Citizens of the Reich) movement, whose members reject the legitimacy of the modern German state, shook the country’s establishment.
(Reporting by Kirsti Knolle and by Madeline Chambers, Editing by Linda Pasquini)
